All-University Faculty Committees

An important role for Faculty in shared governance is participation in committees. All-university Faculty committees are established either by the PSU Faculty Constitution or by administrative action.

A listing of all-university faculty committees together with their charges, as well as the annual calendar of committee reports to Faculty Senate, is published in the annualFaculty Governance Guide. For brief descriptions of the committees' functions and workload in table form, see the committees overview. For more detailed descriptions, membership rosters, and committee reports and other documents, follow the alphabetically arranged links to the left, or follow the category links below:

There are several governance bodies elected directly or indirectly by the Faculty. The Faculty Senate (currently about 60 members) is apportioned and elected by divisions of the Faculty. The Committee on Committees, whose members are elected by divisional caucuses of the Faculty Senate, appoints members of standing and ad-hoc constitutional committees (with the exception of the Advisory Council, whose members are elected by the Faculty as a whole). The Committee on Committees also recommends membership of some administrative committees. Membership of other administrative committees is determined by their respective administrative liaisons. (See Article IV, Section 4.1 of the PSU Faculty Constitution.)

Constitutional committees are those established under provisions of the Faculty Constitution. Members of all constitutional committees are appointed by the Committee on Committees. Recruitment is primarily based on interest in service that individual faculty report each spring in the Faculty Committee Preference Survey (FCPS)

Administrative committees are those established by action of the President or other administrative officers. Some administrative committees exist by requirement of federal or state laws and regulations. This category also includes several committees with oversight over various student-fee-related activities. Appointment of administrative committees varies: in some cases, recommendations are made by the Committee on Committees; in other cases, appointments are the responsibility of the respective administrative liaisons. Recruitment likewise varies: in some instances through the FCPS, in other instances through the administrative office.

Ad-hoc committees and task forcesmay be established either by Faculty Senate or by the President, with a specific charge and for a defined period of time. Task forces include membership from more than one appointing authority (e.g., Faculty Senate, administration, union). The method of appointment varies according to the group's function; in general, members of Faculty Senate ad-hoc committees and Faculty membership task forces are appointed by the Committee on Committees.